This invention relates generally to pointing devices and, more particularly to an improved pointing device which is ergonomically designed to combine the desirable features of a conventional joystick and a conventional control pad.
Pointing devices including joysticks and control pads are known in the art. Traditional joysticks have been used primarily as a gaming controller, although they have also been employed as general mouse replacement devices. In a typical application, the joystick pointing device is connected via cables to a microcontroller of a computer with a display and a keyboard. The joystick has the advantages of reliability and performance. The joystick also has the advantage of better ergonomic design than the control pad because it allows the digit of the human hand to move laterally without stress to the associated joints of the hand, which means that it is more comfortable to use and less likely to cause any joint damage (e.g., repetitive stress disorder). On the other hand, it has the disadvantage of taking substantial vertical space, which makes it potentially more difficult to physically fit the stick inside a device such as a remote control. Further, the height of the stick makes it more difficult to protect the stick from accidental deflection.
The control pad eliminates the size issues and the associated problems because it takes up no more height than a standard button on a remote control. Unfortunately, they lack the ergonomic advantages of the joystick. More specifically, a conventional disc-type control pad creates significant risk for repetitive stress disorder because, for instance, the pad controller causes the joint of the digit to attempt a rotational movement in the east/west axis (laterally), which causes considerable stress to the joints. Alternately, the user may lift the digit and press the side of the button, but it would result in discontinuous control.